While delivering his first speech as pope last year from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, Leo XIV paused, and then briefly switched from Italian to Spanish.
asserted
XIV → deliver → Spanish
“A greeting to all,” he said, smiling.
asserted
he → say → all
Before he was elevated to the highest earthly authority in the Catholic Church, Robert Francis Prevost, a 71-year-old Chicago native, spent two decades as a priest and bishop in Peru, where he mastered Spanish and became a naturalized citizen.
asserted
he → elevate → Spanish
He served from 2015 until 2023 as diocesan bishop of Chiclayo, a small city near the Pacific coast.
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He → serve → coast
A mototaxi passes a mural depicting different stages of Pope Leo XIV’s life in Chiclayo.
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mototaxi → pass → Chiclayo
A mural welcomes Pope Leon XIV to Chiclayo, where he once worked.
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he → welcome → Chiclayo
A worker adjusts the lighting illuminating a life-size cardboard cutout of Pope Leo XIV on the balcony of Chiclayo’s municipal building.
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worker → adjust → building
The pontiff returned to Peru this week for the final leg of a celebratory but politically charged Latin America tour, where Catholicism is in decline, eclipsed by the rise of evangelical Christian churches, and a new wave of right-wing politicians have come to power on platforms that often clash with Leo’s teachings.
asserted
that → return → teachings
The visit also comes just weeks after Leo, who was diagnosed with cancer, had surgery to remove a tumor on his lung.
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who → come → lung
In Argentina, Leo delivered a veiled critique of libertarian President Javier Milei’s austerity campaign, insisting that economies must serve the most vulnerable.
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economies → deliver → vulnerable
In Buenos Aires, Leo visited a facility that serves more than 400 people with disabilities, a symbolic choice because Milei’s government has withheld funding for disability care.
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government → visit → care
“A nation’s progress,” Leo said, “is also measured by how it welcomes all people with disabilities and particular needs.”
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it → say → disabilities
And in Peru, the Pope urged justice as the country confronts its turbulent past, remarks that seemed to reference the controversial legacy of authoritarian leader Alberto Fujimori, the father of newly elected President Keiko Fujimori.
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that → urge → Fujimori
Leo has criticized the human rights violations documented under the elder Fujimori’s reign and led pro-democracy actions while living in Peru.
asserted
Leo → criticize → Peru
Leo, who while bishop created a housing project for Venezuelan migrants and helped many attain legal status, is also at odds with Keiko Fujimori’s immigration stance, including her promise to expel the more than 1 million people who fled political and economic crises in Venezuela and lack legal status in Peru.
asserted
who → create → Peru
But in Lima, where 3 million people lined the streets to greet the pontiff as he cruised by in the popemobile, tensions were mostly overshadowed by the elation of the crowds, who greeted him with chants of “Leo!”
asserted
who → line → Leo
Fujimori praised the pontiff during an appearance with him at the city’s Gran Teatro Nacional, adding that “to move forward, Peru needs to reconcile.”
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Peru → praise → Nacional
Leo spent most of his speech fondly recalling his time in Peru, including the friendships he made there and his love of ceviche, the national dish.
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he → spend → ceviche
“This return visit holds a very special meaning for me,” the pope said.
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pope → hold → me
“I am returning to my homeland.”
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I → return → homeland
Though Catholics still make up the largest religious group in Latin America, their numbers have been declining in recent years, with many joining evangelical churches.
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many → make → churches
In Peru, for example, the number of adults who identify as Catholic dropped from 76% in 2013 to 67% this year.
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who → identify → %
That’s according to a recent survey of six Latin American countries by the Pew Research Center Survey.
uncertain
That → accord → Survey
In Argentina, the Catholic presence dropped from 71% to 56%, the survey found, while Mexico slipped from 81% to 71%.
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Mexico → drop → %
Leo’s visit is seen as an effort to bolster the faith in the region.
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visit → see → region
The trip began in Uruguay, which is considered Latin America’s most secular country.
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which → begin → Uruguay
Yuri Wong, an Afro-Peruvian art restorer at Chiclayo Cathedral, installs the Christ of the Agony at the cathedral’s entrance ahead of Pope Leo XIV’s arrival.
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Wong → install → arrival
2. Detail of a devotee touches the hands of Pope Leo XIV’s life-size cardboard cutout at Chiclayo Cathedral.
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Detail → touch → Cathedral
3. A parishioner prepares to pray at Chiclayo Cathedral.
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parishioner → prepare → Cathedral
4. Reconstruction of the tomb of the Lord of Sipan, a spiritual and political leader, discovered in 1987 by a team of Peruvian archaeologists led by Walter Alva.
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Reconstruction → discover → Alva
The discovery is considered one of the most significant archaeological findings in South America.
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discovery → consider → America
Pope Leo XIV has been actively advocating for the rights of indigenous people, Peru’s Truth Commission, as well as justice for the victims of former President Alberto Fujimori’s dictatorship.
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XIV → advocate → dictatorship
On Friday, Leo will travel north to Chiclayo, celebrating mass with a community that remembers him as an activist priest who was particularly close to his parishioners.
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who → travel → parishioners
“He was so compassionate,” said Fabiola Risco Pacheco, a longtime church volunteer in Chiclayo.
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Pacheco → say → Chiclayo
“During the rainy season, he would join in and help with flooding.
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he → join → flooding
To get to parts of the highlands where vehicles can’t reach, he would walk or ride a donkey.”
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he → get → donkey
Risco got to know Leo personally, from his taste for ceviche to his propensity to cry alongside parishioners who were going through hard times.
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who → get → times
Her son, like many youngsters here, was confirmed by Leo.
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son → confirm → Leo
After he was elected pope, she said, “no one could believe it.
uncertain
one → elect → it
Everyone started posting their confirmation photos on social media.”
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Everyone → start → media
…and 17 more, not listed.
The Aporia
